Does the word “essay” send cold shivers down your spine?

You’re not alone.

Many students find essay writing a demanding, even stressful project. They feel insecure about their writing skills and arguments, they worry about spelling mistakes and word choice, and they stress out over the topic they’ve chosen.

It doesn’t have to be that way.

Essay writing can be an enjoyable, constructive experience. Here’s how.

Create an Outline

Many students make the mistake of starting to write straight away, with no direction, no main argument, nothing.

Even thought it might seem to be the easiest way to start, it wastes time in the end. More often than not this method results in a poorly structured essay that lacks coherence and value.

Instead, you need to create an outline with an introduction, main body, and conclusion. For each section write a brief note on the main idea to be discussed. Think of arguments and counterarguments, draw on your experience and what you’ve studied and learned, and create an outline that will make it super easy for you to write your essay.

Don’t look at your watch. Leave ample time for your outline as it will make all the following steps much easier for you! So, if you have two hours to write a 1,500 words essay, make sure you devote at least 15 minutes to your outline.

Highlight and Understand Your Main Idea

This is part of the previous step, but for emphasis we’ve put it out here on its own. It is crucial that you understand your main idea. Your essay shouldn’t touch upon many things; it should be an in-depth attempt to analyze or present a single idea.

Discover your argument, refine it, and make sure you focus on it and only it throughout your essay.

Don’t Over-think – Start Writing!

Now that you’ve got your main idea distilled and your outline by your side you should be fearless and eager to start.

Start writing, then!

Don’t over-think what you’ve already done, just use your outline as your guide and start expanding on your notes. You’ll be surprised at how easily ideas come to you, word after word flowing from your brain. Make sure to offer examples when they are appropriate, especially when your idea is complex or difficult to understand.

Never assume your reader knows what you’re thinking. On the other hand, don’t put in unnecessary details with information that is common knowledge. Think quality, not quantity.

Edit Your Draft

Take a deep breath, stretch your shoulders, and delve into your first draft.

Read the whole thing and edit sentences that don’t make sense. Delete repetitive phrases, add more content when an idea needs more expansion to be understood.

Read It Again

Read once more to check for flow, coherence, and argument logic. Make the necessary changes and additions where there are gaps in your thinking and rationale, explain bits and pieces that are obscure, and make sure you link each idea to the next in a logical, straightforward manner.

Proofread It

It’s time to polish your essay. Read once more and this time look for spelling mistakes, word choice, syntax, and grammar mistakes. Fix those.

Now relax, you’re done.

Submit and Feel Proud

Now submit your essay and feel proud that you’ve successfully gone through the process and got out in one piece. See, it wasn’t that hard!

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